Radatok trembled at the appearance of the demon. Unconsciously, his eyes widened.

In all his years as an Inquisitor, he had never seen a demon of this magnitude. Just witnessing it induced fear, causing his voice to shake—a bizarre demon that could evoke such a reaction.

The demon's army began to swarm forward. Slime and bodily fluids clung to the ground, sticking and releasing repeatedly. The increasing pace and quaking earth echoed around them.

Radatok shouted, raising his voice further to drive out his internal fear.

"Formation! Form up! Keep your line straight!"

Under Radatok's command, the troops adjusted their formation. Despite trembling legs and nervously swallowing, they gripped their weapons tightly.

Radatok exchanged glances with Isabella. Their swords, raised against a common enemy, pointed forward.

"Raise your swords! Prepare for the final battle!"

The Inquisitors, covered in blood and flesh, lifted their blazing eyes.

He swallowed his fear and used it as fuel to ignite an even greater Holy Fire.

Standing at the forefront was just one person, stepping forward more than anyone else, continually stoking Ra's flames.

Jahad.

Apprentice Priest Jahad.

"Oh, God."

One of the Inquisitors trembled, his hands shaking, legs unsteady, and body shivering. The hand that held the sword trembled like an aspen leaf, but he did not let go.

Turning fear into courage.

Turning courage into flames.

"His flames resemble hers..."

The verse muttered by one spread to another.

"May I also become fuel like him."

One.

Two.

And then ten.

Under the murmured phrases, everyone raised their swords, drawing upon the last remnants of the Holy Fire from the ground.

The flames enveloped the Inquisitors. Taking a step ahead of the Snake Cult, the fire scorched the wall of flesh.

"When you pray, enter your solitary cell and gaze at the candle flame."

Radatok finished the verse.

"That will be your world."

Heavy swords moved.

"...Ra, look after me."

‘What should be done?’

Isabella pondered. The enemies before her poured endlessly from the colossal heart.

The guardian.

Jahad had spoken. He had definitely called it a guardian.

He said that as long as it existed, the heart could not be destroyed.

But the path to reach that demon was long.

Numerous demons were obstacles, blocking the path.

"...We must break through the path...is that it?"

The Snake Cult was trembling. Isabella understood that tremor better than anyone.

She was trembling too. Yet, she knew she must go forward. It was destiny. If she fell here, life would hold no meaning.

The Paladins asked nothing.

But the follower of the Snake god did ask.

“I am afraid, Priest. What should we do?”

“Raise your sword.”

“My hands are too weak. I cannot hold anything.”

“Raise your sword.”

“Even if I raise it, we will die here… In this hell, what can we possibly do?"

The Snake Cult consisted of followers and Paladins. Not everyone was filled with unwavering faith.

There were individual differences. Isabella looked back at the followers of the Snake Cult. They were trembling. Those who were not Paladins were all afraid.

They were simply the followers of ordinary battles. They lacked power and had already witnessed many deaths.

It's actually a relief that they hadn't gone insane.

She wished she could let them rest, if only the situation allowed it. But Isabella gave the order.

"Raise your sword. Remember our origin."

"What is that?"

"Naga. We were born from the serpent, and one day we'll return to the scales. That's not the end. It's a new beginning."

Isabella believed those words. Behind Jahad, she saw Naga and confirmed that the god was by her side.

‘She is watching over me. And I am watching her too.’

"The demons coming from hell are watching us. Even the wicked heretics have taken up their swords."

The followers of the Serpent God looked at the Inquisitors. They began to pick up their fallen swords one by one.

"If those creatures crawl out of here, even our comrades will be in danger. We are the only ones who can stop them."

"Then is the only reason we fight to protect them?"

"Yes."

"Then, who is protecting us? In this hell, who will watch over us?"

Isabella fell silent. Her faith was testing her.

So she had to give an answer.

"...Naga."

Isabella wrapped shadows around her body.

She harnessed her holy power and glared at the approaching masses of flesh.

“Remember our mission.”

The followers of the Serpent God remained silent. A paladin murmured.

“To spread the teachings of the Serpent across the world.”

“To reject all who do not believe.”

“To drive out heresy from this world.”

The followers of the Serpent God were still afraid. Such fear could not dissipate in an instant.

But Isabella knew. She understood how to suppress fear. How to transform faith into blind devotion.

That method was fear itself.

“Raise your swords.”

A teaching completely contrary to the Sun God Religion.

Isabella disliked that phrase. Yet, she also knew it was astoundingly effective.

“Those who do not raise them, those who do not follow the teachings, my sword will strike your head even before the demon's claw does.”

The followers of the Serpent God trembled. Yet, despite this, they all picked up their weapons.

The final holy war was approaching.

Isabella gripped her sword. Her hands shook, but she looked forward.

‘Naga was watching.

I must answer her.’

A moment of impact.

And blood and flesh splattered.

"Kill them allll!"

"For Ra!"

"For Naga!"

A slaughter. There was so much blood that it was impossible to distinguish between allies and enemies. I clicked my tongue at the overwhelming amount.

How grotesque.

For those with weak stomachs, it's the kind of scene that would make them lose it immediately.

I raised my sword and pushed forward. I had to break through.

Grasshopper.

The massive creature stands still until we enter its zone. If we don't target its heart from outside that zone, Vaigines' digestive fluids will instantly engulf everyone here.

In the end, we have to get there.

If we can just defeat it and crush its heart, it's game over. It's right to finish this swiftly and decisively.

"Clear a path! Right now!"

"Aaaahhh!!!"

Ratatok unleashed fierce flames. It was a ferocious strike. The Sun God Religion Inquisitor's ultimate skill had manifested through his greatsword.

[Warning.]

[Beware of the heat.]

[Inquisitor Ratatok activates the Eternal Flame (A).]

"Oh Ra! Watch over me!""

Wisdom is something that accumulates gradually. Unlike physical strength and vitality, which decline with age, experience continues to build.

Inquisitor Radatok.

The formidable experience he amassed descended upon the world. His path, marked by countless efforts and miracles, was forged into reality through his greatsword.

Heat.

Firepower.

A blaze of accumulated flame that I could never have imagined now engulfed my entire vision.

"Seeds of evil! I will burn you all away!"

Whoosh.

The crackling sound of the fire was subtle.

Yet the impact of the phenomenon was anything but small.

Fwoooooosh!

The massive parasites screamed. The beast of flames engulfed the surroundings, melting everything it brushed past. An area attack, and what an immensely powerful one!

In an instant, a path opened. Through the melted flesh and heat, a direct route to the Grasshopper was cleared.I whistled.

"Damn, Radatok, you're the best!"

"Go forth, Brother!"

I dashed out immediately. A massive path lay before me. But soon, like a tide, the parasites began to flood in through the spaces.

They quickly filled in, blocking the path before we were even halfway there. I found myself isolated in the middle and clicked my tongue in frustration.

Damn. I need to conserve my strength.

I engulfed my sword in flames. But there was no need to unleash it yet.

[Warning.]

[Be cautious of the erosion.]

[Paladin Isabella activates the Echo of the Abyss (A).]

"Naga! I shall sing for you!"

A sound resonated.

The parasites stopped. In the continuous sound, the shadows of the parasites squirmed.

Blades pierced their backs. From the shadow born under the eternal flame, a sword emerged. Isabella's sword.

Dozens, even hundreds of cursed swords simultaneously struck the vital spots of the parasites.

Blood splattered, and bodily fluids scattered. Yet, it didn’t end merely with a stab. Shadows climbed atop the blades. Tiny snakes running along the sword’s edge.

The shadowy snakes burrowed into the parasites' bodies along the wounds, swiftly circulating inside. They devoured blood and flesh, even reaching the brain.

The parasites' heads all shook at once. The fleshy masses, which I mistook for eyes, flipped over, and soon a thick, rancid black liquid began to flow out.

A silent assassination. An attack hard to avoid unless you had eyes on your back.

The rotting parasites, decaying from the inside, fell to the ground. The blocked path opened once again. I immediately leaped over the corpses.

"Thank you, Noona!"

"I'll leave the rest to you! Jahad!"

Thanks to the two main NPCs, I reached the Grasshopper without using any strength.

Its tens of grotesquely split eyes and abnormally long limbs were on a completely different level than the shrimp or crabs I had seen before.

Ah, it's hopeless.

There's no way to defeat that.

I know. I know that as I am now, I could never reach it.

...But.

But you see.

I have a hidden trump card, too.

"Hehehe."

[Wait, Jahad? How do you know about that?’

I slipped my hand into my coat at the sound of Naga’s voice. Even as my former self, I could have used it briefly.

As someone with the Mixed Stigmata (A), I can use it for even longer now!

"By the will of the gods, I'll defeat you! Grasshopper!"

【W-what is this situation?!】

Fwoosh.

A high-grade piece of transport equipment, the Demon Sword, emerged from my pocket. It was the strongest item I owned and of the highest grade.

"Life is a cheat!"

[Warning]

[Warning]

[Warning]

[The Stigmata rejects the invasion of 'Demon Magic'.]

[Erosion is beginning.]

[The body is becoming contaminated.]

[The twisted Stigmata entirely rejects the invasion of 'Demon Magic'.]

[Using 'Demon Sword Surtr (EX)'.]

[Available usage time: 10 seconds]

[Surtr comes from the south]

[Along with damaging the tree branches]

[The Sun of gods who kill and are killed]

[Sparkles from her sword.]

【It feels even worse now?!】

10 seconds?!

One second is more than enough!

"Grrrr..."

"Shut up!"

I extended the sword. The light of the Demon Sword Surtr materialized for a brief moment, wrapping around my right hand.

Despite being called a Demon Sword, its form is whatever I desire.

I racked my brain. My mind was burning. As if it would ignite at any moment, the world turned a blinding white.

Endure.

A single shot is enough!

"Uaaaahhhhhhhh!!!!"

[Activating 'Laevateinn (EX)'.]

A chilling and bizarre great sword of fire.

I reached out and clenched my fist tightly. With the backlash of the Demon Sword Surtr, my right hand was completely charred black.

But the reward for it was certain.

Grasshopper flinched in surprise, raising its head. Within the vast cavity, a massive greatsword, much larger than itself, materialized and flickered beside me.

It was already too late, you brat.

I swung the colossal flaming greatsword with all my might. The air was forced aside, and the sheer shockwave alone seemed as if it could destroy the world.

This was such a strike. Well, something like the wrath of the gods.

No mere monster could withstand it!

"Get your head down, you brat!"

The great sword of fire plunged into Grasshopper's head.

The unfortunate Grasshopper resisted.

But what could it do?

Could a mere Grasshopper withstand an EX skill?

The flames roared to life. The remnants of an ancient god, which once mercilessly devoured the realm of the gods, engulfed the Grasshopper.

【Noooooooo!!!!】

Surtr was also swept away by the force of my divine power.

What a splendid finish!

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